.308 vs 30.06

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Caliber-o-philes notwithstanding and all other things being equal, at the end of the day there's not a fart's difference between 'em. I don't own either, but I do own a 7.62X54R, and it for all intents and purposes is the same thing, ballistically, and I guaran-damn-tee you that the critter you shoot isn't gonna know or care which one you used. Go with what rifle, weight and action type & length you like best, because you won't ever be truely happy with a compromise...
 
In summary, I will only say, that unless you are shooting the benchrest game, the cartridge dimensions/powder column consideration is far down the list of things that make for an accurate rifle.

Fully agree with you, bud. Then again, if our passion was only about what was "reasonable," then I sure wouldn't have as many rifles in the closet as I do. :) Kinda like those schleps who demand the absolute lightest onobtanium bicycle components and neglect the 5 lb spare tire under their beltline...oh wait, I'm talking about myself.

FWIW, I have noticed that, for a given rifle, some chamberings seem to do better over a wide range of factory and handloaded ammo. When I buy 10 different kinds of ammo for testing, the long-n-skinny cartridges tend to group a bit wider on average than the short-fats. Just my experience...
 
Kinda like those schleps who demand the absolute lightest onobtanium bicycle components and neglect the 5 lb spare tire under their beltline...oh wait, I'm talking about myself.

LOL, I also plead guilty to carrying said spare tire, but I tell everyone that it is merely a tactical ammo pouch.

Don
 
Recoil

The recoil figures are not always chiseled in stone but here they are.

The .308 Win. 8lb gun. with 180gr bullet 17.9 ft, lbs.
The 30-06 8lb gun with 180gr bullet 20.0 ft, lbs.
The 30-06 runs about 80 fps faster factory specs. this will vary.
The .308 is inherantly more accurate but the 30-06 is no sloopy shooter either. I'm a Remington shooter and use the 700s.
Good luck with what ever you choose.:)
 
Everything else being equal, I do find the .308 to be a little easier on the shoulder than the '06 and you are only giving up approx 100 fps with most bullet weights. As someone pointed out earlier, the Tikka is not a true short action, just a long action with a bolt stop so you are not getting as light a gun as you could be getting in a true short action. I have one T3 that seems to be fairly accurate (it's relatively new) but I have owned 3 CZs and they were all very accurate. Good luck.
 
You're missing a piece of the puzzle...

You are right about the cart. BUT the loads that that Never No More listed are within safe limits of a .308 and he made it sound like the gun would blow up. Look at my last post, I gave the load data for the .308, which are almost the same (bullet was a tad heavier on the loads I listed, or just a tad more powder) yet it was stated to "try those in yer bolt gun." The Annoyed Man was right about questioning his .308 destroying loads.
 
If you're buying commercial hunting ammo expect to pay close to a buck a shot for either .308 or .30-06 and either one should be very easy to find. They're two of the most common cartridges available. Up until a couple of years ago though we used to be able to buy 7.62x51(.308), surplus for around 25 cents a shot or so and that stuff has gotten scarce and expensive. There's still some 30-06 surplus out there, and it's cheaper than .308 but you'll have to look around for it or order it online. You can also get cheap Russian made ammo. I've still got about 1500 rounds of surplus left so I haven't had to buy any yet, but I think it's about 60 cents a shot. If you reload, none of this matters much.
 
However, we still don't know if Never No More has all of his fingers intact.

Yup, all 10, fingers and toes. Thanks for asking :)
Got a few frag holes, but they were not self enduced.

I did say use the 178gr A-Max projectile.

What I was getting at is that the upper end heavy pill load for a 308, is still in the medium range for even my gas gun.

I can run much hotter rounds thru the bolt.

I dont use IMR 4895 in my bolt gun any more. There are a lot better powders that can give me max pressure with less powder used.

But them A-Max are fun to let fly. You should start reloading, its a sickness.
 
Deer rifle or everything rifle?

If this is a rifle for deer and critters living exclusively in Texas, it doesn't matter. Do you prefer long actions or short actions? That's the only practical difference.

If, however, you are looking for one rifle to serve your needs should you venture farther from home to hunt bigger critters such as elk or brown bears, etc., go with the 30-06. It's a bit more versatile, doing a little better with heavier bullets at slightly higher velocities.

I'm a fan of the .308, personally, but it does have certain limitations when going after the heavyweights of North American game.
 
Interestingly enough, I'll be going on my first ever deer hunt in a week or so. Happily, the .308 appears to be enough rifle for Texas white tails. That's a good thing, because all three of my rifles are in .308. But if I really catch the hunting bug, then perhaps it will behoove me to buy a rifle chambered in a cartridge with more authority than that. At first, I considered the possibility of a .30-06 for its versatility, but then the .308 is so very close to that already, except for the heavier bullets. So I thought that perhaps it might be better to go up to the next level and buy something like a .338 Win Mag.
 
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